The majority of schools in Michigan re-opened for in-person learning by March 1st after being pressed by the governor in early February to re-open.
Let's take a look at the results... Maybe Tsing Tao can have his Twitter friends create a chart showing the Michigan school re-opening date followed by the dramatic rise in COVID cases across the state in both adults and children.
COVID-19 cases spike in Michigan, fueled by infections among kids
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-michigan-cases-spike-kids/
As federal officials warn of a potential fourth wave of
COVID-19 infections, Michigan has emerged as one of the most pressing hotspots, with average daily infections now five times what they were six weeks ago.
New data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services shows this dramatic surge is due in large part to cases spiking among children and teenagers.
According to state data, since February 19, average daily new COVID-19 cases among children under 10 jumped 230%, more than any other age group. The second-highest increase in infections is in the 10 to 19 age group, which saw cases rise 227%. The trends in these groups exceed that of the state as a whole.
The rise in cases among kids has been evident elsewhere across the country. In Minnesota, people under age 20 made up nearly a quarter of reported cases in March, up from less than 15% at the end of February. Similar trends have been seen in other states as well, including Illinois and Massachusetts. According to the
most recent data from the American Academy of Pediatrics, more than 64,000 new cases in children were reported nationwide between March 18 and March 25, the highest weekly total in a month.
According to physicians and infectious disease experts in Michigan, much of the rise in pediatric cases can be linked to the reopening of schools and youth sports. State data shows more than 40% of new outbreaks (defined as two or more cases linked by place and time) have come from either K-12 schools or youth programs. But Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, senior public health physician at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, says social gatherings after youth sporting events are also contributing to the spread.
"If everyone is removing their mask and going out to dinner to celebrate a big win then all of those precautions go out the door," she said. "So really, this seems to have driven this surge."
The state allowed schools to resume contact sports on February 8, but testing wasn't mandatory for every sport. More than a month later, it tweaked that policy to mandate testing for every sport regardless of whether it's contact or non-contact, a change that will
take effect Friday. Bagdasarian says that like other mitigation measures, this change has received pushback.
While children generally are at
less risk for severe cases of COVID-19, some have suffered
serious illness. Some children go on to develop a condition called
multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) after infection, a rare condition that may affect the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs. As of March 1, more than 2,600 cases had been reported nationwide, with 33 deaths.
Doctors in Michigan are concerned that the current spike in COVID infections will lead to a rise in this syndrome in the weeks and months ahead. Bagdasarian says anecdotally, that's already happening.
Beaumont Health, Michigan's largest health care system, says it has received an uptick in MIS-C cases. Dr. Bishara Freij, chief of Pediatric Infectious Disease at Beaumont Royal Oak, says his hospital has had three MIS-C cases in the ICU last month, and eight total this calendar year. He said MIS-C cases normally lag infections by 2 to 6 weeks from their peak, fueling concerns that more are on the way.
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